Method of lasting uppers.



No. 755,583. PATENTED MAR. 22, 1904.

IN. G. SHAW.

METHOD OF LASTING UPPERS. APPLICATION 21mm JAN. 9, 1904 I .g m p g,

l a? isl rzz/enar: 1 M I UNITED STaTns Patented March 2.2, 1:904.

ATENT. @FHCE.

NATHANIEL Gr. SHAW, OF BROOKTON, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TOGEO. E. KEITH COMPANY, OF BROOKTON, MASSA- OHUSETTS.

METHOD OF LASTING UPPERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 755,583, dated March22, 1904.

Application filed January 9, 1904. Serial No. 188,298. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NATHANIEL G. SHAW, of Brockton, in the county ofPlymouth and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new anduseful Improvements in Methods of Lasting Uppers, of which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates particularly to the operation of lasting uppersof so called blucher shoes, in which the rear central portion of thevamp is extended upwardly toward the instep and is overlapped by thequarters. Heretofore inlasting shoes of this character the said rearcentral portion, which I will hereinafter refer to as the instepextension, has been unsecured against forward movement toward the toe ofthe last, so that when the toe portion of the vamp is pulled forwardover the toe portion of the upper the said instep extension has beenalso pulled forward and displaced, the result being the for mation of atransverse Wrinkle in the vamp at or near the forward ends of thequarters.

My invention has for its object to obviate this objection; and to thisend it consists in holding the rear central portion or instep extensionof the vamp against forward movement while the vamp is being lasted, sothat the pull exerted on the vamp in stretching its toe portion over thetoe of the last will not displace the said instep extension, andtherefore will not cause the formation of the trans verse wrinkle abovereferred to.

Of the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification,Figure 1 represents a plan view of the vamp of a blucher shoe preparedfor lasting in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 represents a sectionon line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 represents a top plan View of apartially-lasted shoe, containing the vamp shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Fig.4: represents a side elevation of the shoe in the condition shown inFig. 3.

The same letters of reference indicate the same parts in all of thefigures.

In the drawings, a represents the vamp of a blucher shoe, the samehaving at its rear central portion an instep extension a, which isformed to project toward or cover the lower portion of the instep of thewearer and is overlapped by the quarters c c. The instep extension a maybe supplemented by the usual elongated flexible tongue (0 which isformed to cover the opening between the forward edges of the quarters.

The vamp a and quarters 0 c are connected in the usual way andconstitute an ordinary blucher-shoe upper. Before the said upper islasted the quarter 0 c are temporarily connected or coupled together tohold them in the proper relation to each other during the lastingoperation and to sustain the strain exerted on the upper tending to pullthe edges of the quarters away from each other. The connecting orcoupling means now generally employed comprise a series of wire arms ff,engaged with several of the eyeleted holes provided in the quarters forengagement with the lacing-cord, said arms being parts of a single pieceof wire connected in a series and adapted to simultaneously engageseveral eyelets. \Vhile the said coupling means resist the lateralstrain or pull exerted on the side portions of the upper when the sameare being conformed to the side portions of the last, they do not resistthe longitudinal strain or pull exerted along the median line of thevamp when the latter is being conformed to the toe portion of the last.The said longitudinal strain therefore tends to pull forward anddisplace the vamp at its rear central portion or instep extension andalong its median line. This displacement is liable to create atransverse wrinkle in the vamp at or near the forward ends of thequarters.

In carrying out my invention I prevent the described displacement byconfining the rear central portion of the vamp against forward movementor movement toward the toe of the last during the lasting operation.This confinement is preferably effected by temporarily attaching a loopa, of woven fabric or other suitable material, to the extension at andpass ing one of the coupling-arms f through said loop before the upperis lasted, the said arm being engaged at its end portions with the twoquarters, as usual, and at its central portion with the loop Z). It willbe seen, therefore, that the loop and the arm f, engaged therewith,prevent displacement of the rear central portion of the vamp when thelatter is pulled forward and conformed to the toe of the last. The endsof the strip forming the loop are preferably interposed between theextension at and the tongue 6& before said parts are sewed together, thestitches passing through said ends and securing the loop. After thelasting operation the projecting portion of the loop is cut away. It isobvious that the confinement of the rear central portion of the vamp maybe effected by any other suitable means which will prevent the. forwarddisplacement of said portion.

I claim 1. That improvement in the method of lasting blucher uppers,which consists in confin- In testimony whereof I have atfixed mysignature in presence of two witnesses.

NATHANIEL G. SHAW.

Witnesses:

JOHN F. ALLEN, H. O. PETERSSON.

